


Fixing Our Mistakes

by ChloeIsGay



Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Implied/Referenced Drug Use, M/M, and ngl yall kinda scared for it, basically coles like gay and isnt aware of it, this is like my first ever fic i'm publishing, troubled teen au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-21
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:33:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24830902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChloeIsGay/pseuds/ChloeIsGay
Summary: Troubled Teen AU: Cole has been sent to a correctional school which aims to fix the bad behaviors his past self has picked up. Although he might not like the idea of changing who he is to start with, things change when he meets some friendly faces which will change his life forever.
Relationships: Cole/Jay Walker
Comments: 10
Kudos: 25





	1. A Rough Start

**Author's Note:**

> Sup everyone, this is my first ever fic that I've uploaded. I hope you enjoy!!

Cole wandered the streets back to his home, he’d spent the last few days with a few of his “friends”. They were just a group of drug addicts who gave him a place to crash when he ran away from home. The sun was setting behind him and he was only about ten or so minutes away from reaching his house. He took a detour towards the nearby park where he would sit to clear his mind. As he sat, he wondered what life would have been like with his mother still around. She definitely wouldn’t have approved of the habits he’d picked up - skipping school, getting high, running away - but then he wouldn’t have developed them if she didn’t die. He was sure of it. His mind moved towards his dad and how he felt about him, it wasn’t as if he hated his father; they’d just grew apart. He felt trapped, he couldn’t tell his dad anything so he would just run. Everything became a blur after his mother passed, like life continued without him and he couldn’t jump back into society. He laid down on the grass and ran a hair through his black hair, he was tired. Tired of the life he had, tired of being alone - there were lower moments than this but right now he wanted to vanish. There wasn’t much he was going home for, other than to collect some things before he ran away again. He wondered about how his dad felt about this. Thoughts ran through his mind quickly, all of them stating he was disappointing everyone he ever cared about. Slowly, he sat up again and watched as the local youth ran around the grass with their friends and families. They played all sorts of fun games like tag or hide and seek. Cole just wished he had friends to do that with, his friends would sit around a TV, get high and watch poorly made shows as if they were entertainment. He got up and brushed the grass off of his over-worn ripped jeans and straightened his shirt before flinging his backpack over his shoulder and heading off towards home. 

“And what time do you call this?” Lou spoke with a seriousness in his voice, he cared for Cole but never knew how to show it. Cole stood in the hallway, his back to his dad, and sighed. He didn’t want this conversation now, he was tired. 

“Dad, why start this now? I’m tired.” Cole groaned back, he was used to this conversation at this point but that doesn’t mean it didn’t annoy him more and more each time they had it.

“Son, you know I’m worried for you. Don’t act like you can hide everything from me, I know what you get up to when you’re away. Remember how many times I’ve had to come and get you from the police station, do you know what that does to me? To see my own son throw his life away?” Lou argued back, he didn’t raise his voice once but he had a fierce tone to every word spoken.

“Whatever.” Cole shrugged off what his dad said, there wasn’t anything meaningful to say back anyways. There was a painful silence between the two before Cole went up to his room. His bed was scruffy and unmade and his room was a mess of clothes and things he wanted to hide from his dad. The paint on the walls was chipping off due to violent outbursts he’d had towards the walls. Cole opened his window slightly to extinguish the horrid smell in the room, he threw his bag on the floor and jumped onto his bed. The moment his head reached the pillow he was out for the night, the weight of the world lifted for a brief moment. 

Dreaming had become rough for Cole, there was always a link to his mother in them. A link to the perfect family he once had and a reminder that it was ripped from him. He began to toss and turn in his bed, trying to shake away the images of his mother. These dreams were always about the moment when he found out she was gone, and never about the memories and good times they shared. Loud screams filled his head, he found himself to be a child again in clothes that were too big for him. It seemed like he was there as a child in current clothing. He never saw his mother die, but he was told about how it happened. A young Cole stood on the pavement by the road, waiting patiently for his mother to cross the road. The van that caused her demise came screeching down the road, moments away from a disaster that would shake up Cole’s life for the worst. Cole struggled against a force that kept him still, he desperately wanted to reach out and save her. Suddenly, he felt his body shoot upwards, his breathing heavy. Sitting still, he told himself it was just another stupid dream that he haunted himself with. The darkness of his room consumed him and just added to the severity of his emotions. He got up and went to get some water, hoping to calm his nerves. The water tasted refreshing, but then it always did when your brain was tired. Cole decided to try and get a few more hours of sleep, it would be better to feel slightly refreshed then work himself into the ground. 

He woke up reasonably early considering the events of the night before, and went to see his dad - still in the clothes from the day before. There was a worried feeling deep in Cole’s gut, like something was wrong. His gut proved right when he walked into the living room and saw some strange elderly man sipping tea with his father. The man had some kind of straw hat on along with white robes. His face looked beaten by time and he had a long white beard that looked soft like cotton candy. Cole felt uneasy when all eyes fell on him, his body tensed slightly and he began to feel panicked. Lou set his cup down before standing up to walk over to his son. He placed a hand behind Cole’s back and ushered him over to the elderly man. 

“Son, this is Wu. He’s the headmaster for the troubled kids school on the outskirts of town.” Lou said, making Cole panic more. Wu took one last sip of his tea before placing the cup down on the table. He extended his arm and Cole took the initiative and did the same so the pair could shake hands. 

“Cole, this might be hard to digest at first but you’re going to be attending my school. Your dad has expressed a concern for you and thinks that this would be,” Wu thought for a moment, “a helpful experience to suppress and defeat your struggles.” Cole’s gut was right, there was something wrong. He was being sent away for an issue he couldn’t control. 

“Yea, no thanks old man. I know what’s wrong with me and I’m doing pretty fine on my own.” Cole argued back, not liking the idea of having to leave town for some stupid reason. Lou was seconds away from telling Cole off for being rude, but Wu simply shook his head and chuckled. It was evident he had been in this position before. 

“I’m afraid your attendance is mandatory now. I will be back tomorrow evening to collect you.” Wu said, as he prepared to leave the household. He paused, and turned to Cole once again, “also, don’t run away - this is the one thing you won’t get away from.” Cole didn’t know if that was a threat or a warning, he perceived it as both. 

His first day at school, what joy...Cole groaned at the alarm going off. He checked the time on the alarm clock in the new room he was living in. The time was 6 am, he cursed Wu for making him get up so early. The lamp next to him was flicked on with a simple click as he lazily sat up to start the day. Next to him was a schedule that had all the timings and lessons for the week. It appeared that it would be the same for every week as there was only one laminated slide next to him. He read it carefully, breakfast was at 8 am - that gave him two hours to get ready. Deciding it was useless to waste time he got out of bed and made his way to the shower in his room, he felt oddly privileged to have a room with a bathroom connected to it. The water hit his back as he began to wash himself, he didn’t know why he wanted to make himself presentable for his first day but he did so anyway. As he showered he began to wonder about who he’d meet, would they be as messed up as him? Maybe less? Maybe more? It scared him to find someone who was mentally worse than him. Once out of the shower he dried himself off and proceeded to towel dry his hair, the black mess he called his hair had found its way into the usual wavy shape. It would droop down and cut across his left eyebrow, giving him a signature emo look. He chucked on some dark colored clothes, grabbed his room key, his schedule and his bag and left the room. He locked the door and placed both his key and schedule in his bag. The contents of the bag was his key, schedule, a notepad and some loose stationary he might need for lessons. 

The cafeteria wasn’t as packed as Cole thought it would be, it became more and more clear to him that this school had less students than normal ones. He chose a table at the back to sit at, it was empty so he felt content with being there. The problem with turning up too early was the anxious feeling of someone coming to sit by him, so he decided to distract himself with the interior of the cafeteria. It was almost mesmerizing how high the roof was, the dull white being somewhat hard to see, the walls were a nice calming shade of blue. There was still an anxious feeling in the core of Cole’s stomach, it worked its way into the background of his mind. Cole’s thoughts were interrupted when a boy with scruffy brown hair, a blue jacket and dark blue jeans sat diagonal from him. Cole looked at the boy, he felt uneasy being near someone he didn’t know. The boy looked back at him, he mustered up a weak smile before extending his hand for a hand shake. 

“I’m Jay, what’s your name?” Jay seemed to be on the quiet side of things, his voice wasn’t bold but it was timid. Cole accepted the handshake and smiled back at Jay, he gave off a friendly atmosphere and Cole couldn’t take his eyes off him. Jay’s face had fluffy brown hair that complemented light brown eyes, a slit in his eyebrow above his right eye and perky cheeks that had a light blush coat across them. 

“I’m Cole. It’s nice to meet you.” Cole took his eyes off Jay and looked towards the table. The time was a little bit past 8 am, and students were already lining up to get food. 

“Should we go get some food?” Cole asked, as a way to break the slight awkward pause the pair had created. Jay looked at him and nodded slightly before getting up and heading towards the line. They walked together with Cole slightly behind Jay, and once they joined the back of the queue Jay turned to face Cole. 

“So, uh, where are you from?” Jay asked shyly, he wanted to pass the time as the queue looked like it would take a while as well as being curious about why Cole was even at this school in the first place. Cole crossed his arms and held himself in tight, thinking of home reminded him of why he was here - because he was a run away, a menace, a burden on his dad. Sunlight from the windows beamed onto Jay’s face, highlighting his freckles that appeared to be carefully dotted onto his still blushed cheeks. Cole could tell that meeting new people wasn’t Jay’s strongest quality. 

“I’m from a town on the outskirts of the city. Nothing special there, just a few shops and the occasional park.” Cole didn’t feel the need nor want to mention the illegal activities he got up to, or how where he lived had an area that had a rather eventful nightlife. Jay let out a small laugh to that, he raised his hand to his mouth to try and cover his laugh. 

“Beats where I live.” Jay said, he noticed Cole looked at him with a slight confusion, “I live in a junkyard, with my adoptive parents.” He looked to the floor, Jay hated to admit he was adopted and where he lived. It wasn’t something he could change but he wanted to, he wanted things to be slightly different. The experience of living in a normal house was something unbeknownst to him, and it felt odd to him. Almost as if everyone but him knew this feeling. 

The breakfast line moved quicker than the boys anticipated, but in that short time they learned more about each other. Cole learned that Jay’s actual parents were really rich but just didn’t want a child, and that his upbringing was focused more around the building of machinery and useless gadgets. Whereas, Jay learned not that much about Cole. He found that they were the same age (with Cole being a few months older), and that he was distant from his dad. Jay found it odd that he didn’t speak about his mother, but assumed it was because she wasn’t around for whatever reason. The pair resumed sitting at the table they were previously at, alone. Breakfast was oddly nice, it had a mixture of cooked and uncooked foods. Some bread and butter accompanied by a few rashers of bacon and some sausages. Cole watched as Jay carefully devoured his breakfast, he was making sure he didn’t spill or drop anything. This unknown weird feeling fell over Cole, it consumed him - why was he so interested in Jay? He’d known him for an hour at most and now he can’t get his weird quirks out of his head, the way he would cover his mouth when he laughed and fiddle with his hands when he spoke. Cole noticed the little things with Jay, and that’s what scared him. His thoughts were interrupted by the loud ringing of a bell, it was time for the first lesson. Jay looked up, and then looked at Cole who was quick to look away. 

“First lesson...what do you have?” Jay asked, he seemed frightened for this. Cole shrugged slightly then went to check his schedule. He studied it carefully, looking for the “Monday 9 AM” box. Once he found the box he saw his first lesson was Dance...great, Cole hated that his first lesson reminded him of his dad. 

“I’ve got dance. You?” Cole hoped Jay had the same lesson as him, it would be nice to know someone in that class considering that dancing could get so intimate. Not that Cole wanted to dance with Jay, it was the better of two bad options he thought. Although, for a brief moment Cole let his mind venture off into a world where he did dance with Jay. Firm and stable arms that would protect Jay’s fragile figure, arms that belonged to Cole. He felt a sudden overwhelming urge to hold Jay close, he hated not knowing this feeling. He heard Jay sigh quite heavily. 

“I have Writing.” Jay was saddened that he couldn’t share his first lesson with his newly found friend, and so was Cole. The boys parted for their lessons after exchanging phone numbers. Cole was sure to send a small text message that just wished Jay some luck on his first day. A few moments later his phone buzzed, signalling that Jay had responded. Happiness flowed through Cole's body as he slowly read the text, "Good luck to you too!! Lets chill at mine later? It was nice talking to you." Cole smiled at the message. He knew things were going to be somewhat good here with Jay by his side.


	2. A Friendly Face

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cole and Jay have some time to bond and grow their friendship.  
> Note: I'm sorry this took so long to upload, I've been extremely busy this month. Hopefully the next update isn't as long as this one. Thank you all so much for sticking with this story.

Evening soon hit and everyone was allowed to roam the campus before lights out at 10PM, Jay had text Cole earlier in the day about hanging out in his flat-like room. Cole hesitantly knocked on the door of Jay’s room, checking the room number again and cross referencing it with what Jay had told him - he was sure he was at the right place.  
“Door’s unlocked!” Jay’s voice came through the wooden door, beckoning Cole inside. Cole pushed down on the handle, and then pushed the door away from him. As the door opened, he took in the details of Jay’s room, it was similar to his own with a connected bathroom. An assumption that every room was basically the same entered Cole’s mind, and it was something he accepted. He walked in and looked around for somewhere to sit, the nearby desk chair becoming where he rested. His backpack was held quite tightly in his hands, he didn’t want to disrupt Jay’s room. Jay had noticed this and signaled to the corner of the room where his bag was.  
“So, uh, what do you want to do? We’ve got a few hours until lights out.” Jay asked, he initiated the meet up but he didn’t plan anything for it. To be totally honest, he just wanted to make a new friend within the first week and Cole looked like someone he could get along with. There was a mystery to Cole’s character, and Jay rather enjoyed that - the friendship didn’t feel as demanding if both held things back. A secure balance, share what you want and hide what you need to. Jay elected to not tell Cole about the truly personal stuff, and the things that made him who he was. There were things he wanted to say but thought they should be for another day, or when he could trust Cole with deeper facts rather than the petty conversation information. Jay looked at Cole and properly studied his face. Black hair covered Cole’s bushy eyebrows, but it wasn’t long enough to cover his dark green eyes. Jay saw that Cole didn’t have freckles like he did but instead had a barely visible small scar on the left side of his forehead. That struck curiosity in Jay, how did he get that scar? Was it something he was willing to share?  
“Is there something on my face?” Cole laughed, noticing Jay’s concentrated face staring at him. Jay blinked rapidly a few times before leaning back on his bed slightly.  
“Uh, you don’t. I was just looking at your scar, sorry if you felt uncomfortable.” Jay looked down and fiddled with his fingers slightly, he didn’t mean to make things awkward so quickly. This was just a talent he had somehow acquired. Cole placed a hand to his head and brushed his finger across the scar, the memory of the incident coming back. Jay made a quiet cough noise, “how did you get it? If you don’t mind…” he just wanted to know the story, but only if Cole was comfortable with sharing.  
“This silly thing?” Cole questioned before letting go of a small laugh, “It was a climbing accident. My head collided with the side of the cliff and a little too hard and cut my head open. Sounds bad, I know, but it was fine to be honest.” Cole had this sweet smile on his face, and Jay was glad to see it. It felt natural to see. At various points during his short time with Cole, Jay had forgotten the place he was at. School didn’t feel like a new weight on his shoulders, like it did a few days back when he was first told where he was going. He was still kind of concerned for Cole considering the fact his head hit the cliff, and left a scar but he decided to not question it anymore - he just shook his head and scoffed at the story. An awkward silence fell among the two again, and this time it was Cole’s turn to make the subject.  
“What’s your schedule like?” He asked Jay. Cole had his laminated sheet in his hands and was looking though it, not exactly reading it but just looking. He could hear Jay shuffle around to try and find his schedule, followed by a small “hmm” sound as he read the sheet in front of him. Cole noticed a slight hint of fear on Jay’s face, and concern grew inside him. Slowly, he took Jay’s sheet from him and looked at it himself. There was nothing there that alarmed Cole immediately, but then he didn’t know what Jay was like with lessons. All it takes is a few bad classmates and then that’s school ruined forever. Looking back up at Jay, Cole noticed that he’d placed himself firmly on his with his knees up to his chest, being hugged by his arms. His head was placed on top of his knees and it sounded as if the poor boy was holding back tears.

“No no no, this can’t be happening. I told him I didn’t want to go. Oh no, what am I going to do?” Jay murmured to himself, it seemed like he forgot Cole was even present. A few light sniffs came from the huddled up mess that was Jay, and his breathing began to sound heavy. Cole was more in shock than anything else, he didn’t know what was wrong with Jay and he certainly didn’t know how to help him out his...predicament. Jay began to mutter a few curse words under his breath, nothing offensive but general swears you would hear from foul mouthed people.

“Jay, what’s wrong? What did you see?” Cole placed a hand on Jay’s shoulder, and spoke soothingly to him. He would be lying if he said he knew what to do, this was all improvisation. It was an unexpected wave of guilt that came over Cole which persuaded him to help. It’s not that he felt guilty about Jay’s state, it was more that he didn’t want to just sit there and let him suffer. As soon as Jay felt the human contact, he rushed straight into Cole’s arms. His grip was tight around Cole’s abdomen, it was like Jay was never going to see him again. Cole simply responded by placing one arm around Jay’s waist and placing one hand in his soft brown hair. Calmly, he began to pat and play with Jay’s hair in the hopes it would help him pull himself together. A small blush painted Cole’s cheek as these events began to unfold before him.

“Oh, haha, don’t worry about it.” Jay muffled into Cole’s shoulder, he was trying to play the whole experience down, despite feeling like he was going to implode at any second now. He pulled away from the hug and used his sleeves to wipe his eyes.

“Seriously, Jay, tell me. It’s clearly upsetting you.” Cole’s voice was still soothing to hear but there was a slight pinch of demand in it. He wanted to know desperately what worried Jay so badly, so he could help with the recovery. Jay looked up at him with bloodshot eyes, and a slightly red nose. He sighed loudly, in preparation to tell Cole the truth, and sat down again. Cole followed by example, but sat right next to Jay this time. A mini debate took place in his head on whether or not he should hold Jay’s hand or place an arm around his shoulder, but decided against both of these things.

“Okay, I’ll spill, but you have to promise not to tell anyone else.” Jay warned, he didn’t want the embarrassment of the whole school knowing, “I hate therapists. Cannot stand them, I’ve been going to different ones for years now but each says the same rehearsed, processed crap they’re paid to dish out.” Jay had become quite closed off after he finished speaking, and Cole had no words to say to him. Both boys just sat there for a while, and Cole pulled Jay in for another hug as comfort.

Time passed by, and soon it became clear that Cole had to go home. He grabbed his bag and flung it on his bag with a simple, sluggish movement. A small glance at Jay solidified the goodbye, Jay looked back at Cole with a small smile. There wasn’t much left to say between the two, so no words were spoken in that brief encounter they shared at Jay’s apartment door. Cole shut the door behind him when he left and then began the slow walk back to his room. Walking down the stairs of Jay’s “block”, as the boys called it, Cole felt a loneliness he’d never felt before. It was usual for him to feel alone ever since he lost his mother, and his dad not being the most ideal person to talk to. Him and his dad had never been close, there was just an unidentified issue either of them didn’t want to acknowledge; he knew his father cared for him but it never felt like he loved him. There was something different about how he felt around Jay, not a feeling from within him but the feeling he felt from Jay. It was an odd sort of appreciation he felt, almost as if Jay had been looking for someone like him for a while now - someone just as broken on the inside. Cole noticed the street lights flick on with a few uncertain flicks. It was a beautiful sight, the pavement ahead which had become exposed to the light, showing Cole the way home. It reminded him of the nights he would spend out with his friends back home. The group of them would sit on a park bench; they would talk, smoke, drink, be loud and obnoxious. It was the usual teenage thing to do but it felt so wrong to Cole. He had the choice of being with people he didn’t truly want to be around but in the open space, or stuck at home with his father. It was an obvious choice at the time, but his short time away from home made him question his motives back then. Maybe this place would change Cole for the better, but would he allow himself to become a better person in the eyes of the twisted society he lived in...it was something Cole knew he would struggle with. This place would surely test Cole, and he wasn’t scared because he had Jay. Their friendship was something Cole was certain he had, and with that thought in his head he opened his apartment door. He chucked his bag in the corner of his room, and flopped on his bed. A quick glance at his phone showed a message from Jay. He read it slowly, “thanks for being there with me tonight, it was nice to have company ❤️”. The little heart at the end made Cole smile. He felt loved from Jay and it felt normal, too. Cole sent a message back to Jay, "it was no trouble, we have to stick together now. Sweet dreams, dude." The last part of the message made Cole hesitant to send it, but he did so knowing it wouldn't really matter anyway. He shut his phone off, placed it on the bedside unit and went straight to sleep. 


End file.
